The former New York City mayor spoke during a TV interview (AP)Community members demonstate after a vigil in memory of Alton Sterling, who was shot dead by police, at the Triple S Food Mart in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S. July 6, 2016. REUTERS/Jeffrey Dubinsky

Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani has accused the Black Lives Matter movement of being “inherently racist” during a TV interview.

His comments came amidst the ongoing protests across the country following the fatal shootings of black men by white police officers and the killing of five police officers in Dallas.

Mr Giuliani said the media’s coverage of the deaths has “created a disproportion”.

He added that the Black Lives Matter movement has promoted violence against the police by putting “a target on police officers’ backs”.

He said of the activists: “They sing rap songs about killing police officers, they talk about killing police officers, they yell it out at their rallies and the police officers hear it.”

Mr Giuliani also argued that black children are at more risk of being killed by another black child than by a police officer.

Community members demonstate after a vigil in memory of Alton Sterling, who was shot dead by police, at the Triple S Food Mart in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S. July 6, 2016. REUTERS/Jeffrey Dubinsky

“If you want to deal with this on the black side, you’ve got to teach your children to be respectful to the police, and you’ve got to teach your children that the real danger to them is not the police,” he said.

“The real danger to them, 99 out of 100 times … are other black kids who are going to kill them. That’s the way they’re going to die,” he claimed in the interview.